


Feathers of Citrine

by bluetoast



Series: Birds of a Feather [54]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Animal Abuse, Arson, Hoarding, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-23
Updated: 2014-05-23
Packaged: 2018-01-26 06:09:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1677641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluetoast/pseuds/bluetoast
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Castiel's adjusted to his new reality, after being there almost a year. He finds comfort in walking - until he takes a walk to a place he can't believe exists. There wasn't any harm in taking the first to kittens away from someone with over a hundred of them. The third kitten, however, is far more frightened than the others.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Feathers of Citrine

Walking was an odd thing when you did it by choice, rather than out of necessity. Castiel wasn't sure which was harder to get used to doing – walking for fun, or wearing shoes designed for that purpose. Since his arrival in this reality back in April, there were a host of things he'd had to work on getting used to. 

A Dean that was deaf, a Gabriel who wasn't a total sugar addict, a Zachariah without a stick up his ass, and the fact that this place would never know the form of Apocalypse he had escaped. Well, maybe not escaped, so much as he might have been expelled from it. He did miss the people he knew in that place, some more than others – even the annoying things he found himself missing from time to time. Dean's off-color humor or Sam's continual frustration at his older brother's sophomoric behavior. He even missed the smell of gun oil and rock salt every now and then. 

Getting back to walking...

Castiel estimated he walked five miles every day – and he never walked in the same place. Now that he had his wings back, he could simply fly to one location, walk for a while and then return home. Following Gabriel's advice, he didn't get a job in teaching – he fit into the human world by working as a night watchman at an art museum. 

Right now, however, he was walking. The October air had the barest hint of winter in it as he made his way down a residential street in... where was he again? Idaho? Utah? One of the two. He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his overcoat, glad that at least it, unlike most of his clothes, had survived the trip from his former home to this one. He was about to cross the street and then vanish, heading for home when he was out of sight when a chorus of cries echoed in his mind.

_Help me!_

_No!_

_So hungry..._

_Share!_

_Help!_

_Momma!_

It went over and over, a litany of wailing and pain that nearly knocked him flat. 

Castiel did what made sense. He turned towards the calls for help and distress. As he made his way down the street, a smell reached him. A smell that reminded him strongly of Hell. It was of waste, bloodshed and death. At last he came to stop outside of a ranch-style house, rather like his own back in Austin – and the wails grew louder. A moment later, the angel realized he wasn't hearing the cries of humans, but of cats and their kits. Scores of them lived in that house – it was too painful to concentrate to get an accurate number. How could a human do this to these poor innocent animals? Didn't they see their suffering? 

There had to be something he could about this...

In the tall grass of the house, Castiel could see something wobbling towards him. At first he thought it might be stalking a bird, but as he crouched down to get a better look, he could see that it was a kitten. A tiny thing that had most likely only opened its eyes days ago. Taking a quick look around, the angel darted forward, scooped up the animal and in the next instant, reappeared in his home in Austin. 

The kitten yowled in protest. _Mommy! Mommy! Where am I? Help!_

Castiel set the ball of fur on a cushion, gathered a few things from the kitchen and returned to the family room. He sat down on the couch and, after picking the animal back up, slowly began to clean it off. He'd first thought the animal gray or black – but after a little soap and water, the kitten was revealed to be cream with patches of gray and black stripes. “Hush now, you're safe.” He was glad to see that the kitten didn't have many wounds, and those he did have – he was able to heal. 

The tiny kitten fell asleep during his second cleaning and Castiel sighed inwardly. He would have to go back – he couldn't just save this one – he had to save as many as he could, without getting caught. 

The human who was abusing the animals he would deal with shortly as well. 

*

The second kitten turned out to be the first's sister – half sister – but still... She was in worse shape than her brother. She was thinner, scraggly and bore some very ugly wounds. She was a tabby, and was a little less trusting than her brother. Castiel couldn't entirely blame her. The angel didn't see anything wrong with taking the two cats away from their owner – their owner couldn't see what was happening to their pets – so the cats would now be his – at least, these first two. Perhaps as many as four – but for now, he would just keep the first two. 

The boy kitten he named Percy, the girl he named Penny. 

As he looked at the two of them sleeping contentedly in a box warm with a heating pad and towels, he wondered if he might not start saving the kittens two at a time from now on. It was too painful to keep leaving those animals behind.

*

The calico was a little older than Percy and Penny. Whereas the brother and sister he'd picked up in the front yard, cowering in fear, she, the bold thing, had half-run, half limped straight to him from under the porch. Something had scared her – she had seen something, Castiel was certain of it, but she wouldn't say.

It had scared her that bad. 

*  
Castiel let himself into Dean's house, setting down the carrier on the laundry room floor. While the man and his daughter already had one cat, a loveable Maine Coon named Leroux, he couldn't keep the kitten. The calico was jumpy, edgy – and needed someone a little more mellow to be around. Leroux was the perfect someone. He opened the carrier and drew the kitten out, smiling. “Welcome to your new home, kitty.” 

“Morning Cas.” He heard Dean behind him and he turned. 

“Good morning, Dean.” He came out of the laundry room. “I want to thank you again for agreeing to take in another cat.”

Dean shook his head and came over to him. _“Well, thanks for coming over so early.”_

 _“Liesel still asleep?”_ He adjusted the animal so he could use one of his hands to sign.

 _“It's six in the morning on a Saturday, Cas. She'll probably be in bed until eight.”_ He went over to the coffee pot and filled a thermal mug. After setting the pot down, he turned to his friend. _“I should be home a little after two in the afternoon, if there are no complications. Thanks again.”_

He set the kitten down, and she promptly started tugging at the hem of his pant leg, demanding to be picked up again. “You're welcome Dean.” He watched his friend go and then turned his attention to the animal. “I suppose I should show you around your new home.” He smiled faintly when a tinkling bell sounded in the hallway and came closer. “Or perhaps Leroux would like to do it.”

A moment later, a white and brown cat came into the kitchen, sniffing. When he caught sight of the kitten, Castiel felt the jolt of happiness from the older animal. 

How could anyone not know these little creatures could think and feel?

Then again, humans had could barely understand themselves, so really, how could they be expected to understand cats?

*

Castiel knew something was wrong the moment he appeared a few blocks away from the cat-house. A rancid smell hung in the air, a smell that reminded him of the days when he walked the streets of Athens. Worse than the smell was the silence. The last few times, he had heard the cries in his mind instantly. He started walking as quickly as he could without drawing attention. He'd only been gone from this place for a handful of days – but the smell was old. He came around the corner of the street where the house was and the remnants of suffering ripped through him. 

Suffering. Worse than it was before. He could barely manage to walk up the block, the sorrow shaking his grace and threatened to send him to his knees. He covered his mouth with his hand when he finally saw what had become of the unnamed kitten, Percy and Penny's first home. 

The house was a burned out shell and it was almost unrecognizable. Tangled messes of cages stood in heaps in the ashes, and the smell... oh merciful heaven, the smell. Yellow police tape surrounded the yard, with small tarps covering heaps of what could only be dead cats or perhaps some form of debris.

He was too late. All those animals and they were gone. He had been thinking he'd go up to the door this time, ask for several and if the owner refused – taken at least the most helpless of the cats. Or turn the owner into a cat and see what sort of suffering they were causing... all those plans... were gone.

Castiel could catch faint traces of other smells – of poison and of sedatives... how the cats had suffered. He swallowed hard, backing away from the home, a feeling of rage edging towards him. He barely remembered to look around before vanishing from the street and falling, rather unceremoniously, into Dean's kitchen.

“Cas?” A pair of hands helped him so sit up just as the first tears started. It seemed so silly and yet, not enough as he began to weep, sobs wracking his body in an unfamiliar sensation. “Cas?” Dean's voice barely registered in his mind as he suddenly found himself in a tight embrace, a gentle thumb brushing against his cheek as if he was a little fledgling with a skinned knee and was feeling pain for the first time. He let out a breath and gave himself over to the tears. As he did, he promised himself that the next time he found a house full of suffering animals – he would do something about it right away. 

Castiel found himself only crying harder when a second pair of arms, smaller than Dean's – Liesel's – suddenly joined her father's in hugging him and two balls of fur – Leroux and the kitten, climbed into his lap as well. It was of very little comfort, but the cats couldn't understand human emotions and Liesel was just a kid... but he appreciated the attempt. 

*  
Castiel waited nonchalantly outside Liesel's school as the students filed out and waved when he saw her come out with the rest of the third graders. She looked a little surprised to see him – her granddad usually watched her after school. She waved good-bye to a friend and ran over to him; she loved running.

“Hi, Mr. Cas.” She gave him a quick hug. “Is Grandpa sick?”

“No, he wants to get his latest carpentry project done before Christmas.” They started up the street, away from the school. “Since it's for your grandmother, he wants to able to work on it, get it hidden and the garage cleaned up before she gets home from work.”

“Gotcha.” She adjusted her pack. “How are Penny and Percy?”

“Finally on kibble.” The angel smiled faintly. “Does the newest Coulter have a name yet? Your father didn't tell me.”

“That's because he's still working on how to say it.” Liesel gave him a smile that was half amused, half sad. “I named her Noroc.” 

“Noroc?” Castiel paused. “Romanian for lucky.” 

“Yeah.” She paused. “You think that's okay?”

“I think it's perfect.” They continued on for a few minutes. He'd done his best to try and let go of the cats and kittens he couldn't save, it reminded him of being in Hell, racing past souls in search of the Righteous Man and not being able to gather any other innocents. Castiel looked down at the girl, attempting a stronger smile. “Would you like to race?”

“You always cheat when we race.” She started to walk a little faster – and the angel knew were this was going, but he played along. 

“I'm an angel, Liesel, I am incapable of being dishonest.” He said as flatly as he could manage.

“Yes you are, granted it's very Obi Wan Kenobish, but it's still lying!” She stopped and looked at him, her face suddenly splitting into a grin. “Go!” And she took off down the sidewalk.

The angel watched her for a moment and then flew to the end of the block, his smile more certain when she reached him. “It's an unfair contest, Liesel. I will always fly faster than you can run.”

She took a few deep breaths, her face wearing a familiar look of indignation. “Then why do you ask me if I want to race?”

“Because you love to run. And in trying to run as fast as an angel, you'll eventually run faster than anyone else who challenges you to a race.” He gave her a smile. “And you look like your father when you make that face.”

Liesel shook her head and they went back to walking. “Daddy never makes that face.” 

“Oh, he makes it. You just never see it.” Castiel chuckled. “Now tell me, who is this Obi Wan Kenobi?”


End file.
